Speciation hasn't been observed in the fossil record

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Contents 1 Claim 2 Source 3 Responses 4 Fallacies contained in this claim 5 References 6 External Links 7 Related claims 8 See Also 9 Acknowledgments

Claim

Speciation hasn't been observed in the fossil record.

Source

Anon. Life--How Did It Get Here? By Evolution or By Creation?. Brooklyn, NewYork (1985): Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc. p. 65.

Responses

1. There is no way to determine speciation (as defined for living species) in the normal way from the fossil record because we cannot test for whether fossil species could interbreed. This makes the claim meaningless. We don't need to directly observe speciation happening in the fossil record to be able to infer it from the distinctive branching patterns of traits found in different lineages.
2. Paleontologists generally define "species" based on distinctive morphology only. Speciation (in this case, ongoing minor changes resulting in significant morphological differences) using this definition has been observed in many richly populated marine fossil beds, particularly of diatoms, mollusks, brachiopods, and trilobites. Stephen Jay Gould's studies of the West Indies snail Cerion also record a rather smooth transition between species. (From C. excelsior to C. rubicundum)
3. Even if it were true, would we care? Speciation has been observed in modern times. Even creationists recognize that speciation is necessary to account for elements of the Ark myth.
4. In the above source the exact claim is: "'In fact,' The New Evolutionary Timetable acknowledges, 'The fossil record does not convincingly document a single transition from one species to another...'" In its original context it becomes obvious this quote is referring to the lack of transitional fossils only in a specific dig site, Bighorn Basin, Wyoming. Thus the quote is taken out of context and does not retain its original meaning.
5. add more responses

Fallacies contained in this claim

• Red Herring
• Straw Man (inaccurate model of the fossil record/speciation}
• Suppressed Evidence
• Quoting Out of Context

References

1. Cromie, William J., Gazette staff (January 9, 1997). Snails Caught in Act of Evolution. The Harvard University Gazette. Retrieved on 2008-05-23.
2. The Quote Mine Project. Talk.Origins

External Links

• Species and Genus Level Evolution in the Fossil Record.
• Theobald, Douglas (June 19, 2007). 29+ Evidences for Macroevolution: The Scientific Case for Common Descent. Talk.Origins.
• Hunt, Kathleen (March 17, 1997). Transitional Vertebrate Fossils FAQ. Talk.Origins.
• See examples of speciation in the fossil record at Mark Isaak's refutation of the claim "there are no transitional fossils." [1]

Related claims

• The transition of Human skulls are sculptured creations which have been debunked
• Transitional fossils are lacking
• There should be billions of transitional fossils
• We should see a smooth continuum through the fossil record
• Punctuated equilibrium was ad hoc to justify gaps
• Punctuated equilibrium is the opposite of standard evolutionary theory
• Fossil record doesn't show transition from simple organisms to complex ones since bacteria are already complex
• Evolution requires progress through many nonfunctional intermediates
• Fossil record doesn't show progress
• Some species don't seem to evolve for millions of years
• There is no fossil evidence for transition from reptile maxilla to mammal ear bones
• Horse fossils don't show evolution
• There are no fossil giraffes with shorter necks
• Arthropods arose suddenly
• There are no fossil ancestors of insects
• There are no fossil ancestors of plants
• Cambrian explosion shows all kinds of life appearing suddenly
• The fossil record shows sudden appearance followed by stasis

See Also

• Why is Creationism not a Scientific Theory?
• Theory of Evolution

Acknowledgments